1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally directed to dispenser packages that hold sheets, towels, towelettes, tissues, napkins or wipes and is particularly directed to a holder used to secure such dispenser packages.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Items such as sheets, towels, towelettes, tissues, napkins and wipes are frequently used by individuals for personal hygiene. There have been many efforts directed to providing convenient packages and/or dispensers for such items. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,278,011; 2,564,997; 5,065,970 and 5,332,138 all disclose tissue containers that may be secured to a sun visor of an automobile. U.S. Pat. No. 2,818,318 discloses a tissue holder that is attachable to the edge of a table, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,826,407 discloses a tissue dispenser that is attachable to an individual""s wrist.
In many instances, an individual may desire to use a moist tissue or towelette for personal hygiene, cosmetic purposes, household cleaning applications and the like. In response to this demand, a wide variety of moisture-impermeable packages have been developed for storing moisture-impregnated items. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,780,908; 3,836,044; and 3,841,466 disclose such packages. However, the packages disclosed in the above-mentioned patents provide for bulk packaging of moisture-impregnated towels. As a result, these packages cannot be easily attached to another object, such as a sun visor or the edge of a table.
In view of the above problems, there have been many efforts directed to providing user-friendly dispenser packages. For example, commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 4,156,493 and 4,185,754, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein, teach hermetically-sealed packages that have recloseable covers. In certain preferred embodiments, the cover may be opened for removing one or more moisture-impregnated towels, and then reclosed to keep the remaining towels moist. The packages are typically made of one or more sheets of a flexible material such as vinyl or foil. As a result, the packages tend to collapse as the towels are removed.
In many instances, the packages disclosed in the ""493 and ""754 patents are secured in holders. When these packages are placed in a holder, the holder may exert forces on the flexible material portion of the package, thereby making it difficult to remove moist towels. In addition, as towels are emptied from the package, the package may fall out of the holder and/or move away from the dispensing opening in the holder, thereby making it extremely difficult to access the towels remaining in the package.
Thus, there is a need for a holder for a dispenser package that both reliably secures the package and enables the towels packaged therein to be easily dispensed from the package. There is also a need for a holder that maintains the dispenser package in place relative to the holder as the towels are depleted from the package. There is also a need for a holder having a design that facilitates replacing a depleted dispenser package with a refill package.
In certain preferred embodiments of the present invention, a combination preferably includes a dispenser package and a holder for securing the dispenser package. The dispenser package is preferably replaceable so that when the towels packed therein have been dispensed, a refill package may be secured to the holder. The holder may include a stand alone item capable of holding the dispenser package atop a surface, such as a top surface of a table. In other embodiments, the holder may be securable to an edge, such as the edge of a sun visor of an automobile, the edge of a table or a high chair. In still other embodiments, the holder may be securable to a belt or apron worn by an individual. The holder may also be permanently securable to a wall or table top using one or more fasteners such as screws, nails or suction cups.
The dispenser package is preferably made of one or more sheets of flexible material, such as vinyl film, foil or any other flexible material that may be permanently sealed to provide a hermetically sealed container. The flexible material desirably has an opening extending therethrough. The opening is preferably made before the dispenser package is formed. The opening in the flexible material is preferably of sufficient size and shape to allow one or more items, such as moistened towels to be dispensed from the package. The dispenser package may collapse as the towels are dispensed from the package. The package is preferably adapted for holding items such as napkins, sheets, tissues, wipes, towels and/or towelettes (hereinafter commonly referred to as xe2x80x9ctowelsxe2x80x9d). The towels are preferably interleaved with one another so that as a first towel is removed from the package, the leading edge of a second or subsequent towel is drawn through the package opening. As mentioned above, the dispenser package is preferably hermetically sealed so that the towels stored in the package may be maintained in a moistened condition.
A resealable cap assembly may cover the opening in the flexible material. The resealable cap desirably traps moisture within the package for maintaining the towels in a moist condition. The resealable cap also preferably maintains the moisture present in the leading edge of any towels projecting through the package opening. The resealable cap assembly is desirably attached to an exterior and/or interior surface of the flexible material. In certain preferred embodiments, the resealable cap assembly includes a collar that surrounds the opening in the package. The collar may be attached to the exterior and/or interior surface of the flexible material. The collar may also be sandwiched between exterior and interior layers of flexible material. The collar may be attached using an ultrasonic seal, a heat seal, glue, an epoxy, such as a hot melt epoxy, or an adhesive. The resealable cap assembly may include a sealing flange projecting upwardly from the collar and away from the dispenser package. The sealing flange may be integrally formed with the collar. In one preferred embodiment, the sealing flange and collar form a single piece of integrally molded plastic. The resealable cap assembly may also include a reclosable cap that is engagable with an upper surface of the sealing flange to selectively close the opening in the package, thereby retaining moisture within the package. In certain embodiments, the reclosable cap is hingedly connected to the sealing flange. As a result, the reclosable cap may be repeatedly opened for dispensing one or more items from the package, and then reclosed to retain the moisture within the package. The reclosable cap may have an outer perimeter with one or more notches or gripping elements provided thereon so that the cap may be easily engaged for moving the cap between the open and closed positions. In one particular preferred embodiment, the gripping elements include one or more projections extending beyond the perimeter of the cap.
The holder preferably includes a front wall having an upper end and a lower end, a rear wall having a upper end and a lower end, and an bottom wall extending between and interconnecting the lower ends of the front and rear walls. In certain preferred embodiments, the holder is substantially U-shaped. The front, rear and bottom walls preferably form a receiving area for the flexible dispenser package described above. The dimensions of the holder, and particularly the dimensions of the package receiving area, may be modified depending upon the dimensions of the package being received in the holder. The holder desirably has an open end, adjacent the upper end of the front and rear walls and remote from the bottom wall of the holder.
In other preferred embodiments, the holder may also include one or more side walls, each side wall extending between the front and rear walls of the holder. The one or more side walls of the holder may increase the structural integrity of the holder and cover the sealed ends of a dispenser package so that the sealed ends are not exposed. Thus, the one or more side walls desirably cover and protect the sealed ends of the dispenser package, thereby improving the aesthetic appearance of the combination dispenser package and holder. The side walls may also improve the structural integrity of the holder.
The front wall of the holder desirably has outer peripheral edges and an aperture that is spaced inwardly of the outer peripheral edges. The front wall aperture is preferably defined by inner peripheral edges of the front wall that are spaced inwardly from the outer peripheral edges of the front wall.
In certain preferred embodiments, the holder may be attached to a stationary object so that only one hand in needed to open the reclosable cap and remove one or more towels from the package. The holder may be secured to a stationary object through a clip that is attachable to or integrally connected to the holder. The clip is preferably connected to the rear wall of the holder, at a location remote from the front wall of the holder. The clip preferably enables the holder to be secured to an edge surface, such as the edge of a vehicle sun visor, the edge of a table, a baby""s high chair, a work belt and/or an apron. The combination of the holder and the clip may form a substantially S-shaped structure, whereby the clip has an open end that faces away from the open end of the holder. The clip may be detachable from the holder so that a wide variety of clips having different sizes may be attached to the holder. The design, style or shape of the clip attachable to the holder may be modified so that the holder can be attached to different types of surfaces or structures. For example, a clip having an opening facing in a downward direction may be replaced by a clip having a right-hand opening. Clips having different sizes may also be attached to the holder. As a result, the holder may be modified to be attached to visors, tables, edge surface, etc. having different sizes.
In operation, a dispenser package may be secured to the holder by sliding a main body portion of the package between the front and rear walls of the holder. A portion of the resealable cap assembly is preferably passed through the aperture in the front wall so that the resealable cap assembly engages the inner peripheral edges of the front wall aperture. As a result, the resealable cap assembly forms a press-fit, slot-in-groove, or frictional engagement with the inner peripheral edges of the front wall aperture for securing the dispenser package to the holder.
The dimensions of the front wall aperture are preferably substantially similar to the dimensions of the surface area of the resealable cap assembly that engages the front wall aperture. As a result, the resealable cap assembly engages the inner peripheral edges of the front wall aperture when the resealable cap assembly is attached to the front wall aperture. Once the dispenser package has been secured to the holder, the reclosable cap may be opened for dispensing one or more towels from the package.
Although the present invention is not limited by any particular theory of operation it is believed that securing the dispenser package to the holder through the engagement of the resealable cap assembly with the front wall aperture, the flexible material portion of the dispenser package is not compressed by the holder, thereby enabling packaged items to be easily dispensed from the dispenser package. This is an improvement over prior art holders that typically apply a pinching force to the flexible material portion of the dispenser package, thereby making it more difficult to dispense towels from the package. The present invention also holds the opening of the dispenser package against the opening in the holder, thereby avoiding the likelihood that the package will move away from the front wall aperture as the stock of towels are depleted.
In certain preferred embodiments, the resealable cap assembly may include surfaces having one or more peripheral edges engagable with the inner peripheral edges of the front wall aperture for securing the resealable cap assembly to the holder. The one or more inner peripheral edges of the holder may have one or more grooves extending between upper and lower ends of the front wall of the holder. The peripheral edges of the resealable cap assembly are preferably captured within the grooves of the front wall aperture for securing the resealable cap assembly to the holder. The sides of the collar of the resealable cap assembly may taper inwardly between the upper and lower ends of the collar. The tapered surfaces facilitate sliding the peripheral edges of the collar into the grooves formed in the front wall aperture. The cap assembly may also include attachment flanges that project above and beyond the lateral side edges of the collar. The peripheral edges of the collar may also be taper outwardly between top and bottom surfaces of the collar.
The holder may be connected to a heating unit that selectively heats the walls of the holder and any dispenser package secured to the holder. Upon activation, the heating unit heats the walls of the holder which, in turn, heats the towels within the dispenser package to a desired temperature (e.g., body temperature).
The holder may be mounted atop a stand or base which includes the heating unit. The base preferably includes one or more heating coils that may be activated for generating heat. The heating coils desirably extend adjacent the front, rear and/or bottom walls of the holder. As a result, activated heating coils generate heat that is thermally conducted by the walls of the holder. In turn, the heat conducted by the walls of the holder is transferred to the dispenser package and the towels packaged therein.
In certain preferred embodiments, the inner peripheral edges of the front wall aperture have one or more actuators in communication with the inner peripheral edges. The one or more actuators are preferably movable between a first position and a second position. When the actuators are in the first position, a signal is sent to the heating unit to activate the heating coils. When the actuators are in the second position, a signal is sent to the heating unit to deactivate the heating coils. In certain preferred embodiments, when the dispenser package is secured to the holder, the outer perimeter of the resealable cap assembly desirably engages the one or more actuator elements for activating the heating unit. The heating unit preferably includes one or more controllers for turning the heating unit on and off and for controlling the heating level of the heating unit. In one particular preferred embodiment, a rotatable knob is provided that is capable of moving between the following positions: on, off, low, medium and high.
In yet other preferred embodiments, the inner peripheral edges of the front wall aperture of the holder may include one or more internally extending projections, and the outer perimeter of the resealing cap assembly preferably has one or more depressions that are sized and shaped for receiving the one or more internally extending projections. The one or more depressions in the cap assembly may be provided in the outer perimeter of the sealing flange. When a dispenser package is secured within the holder, the male end projections of the front wall aperture mesh with the depressions on the outer perimeter of the cap assembly to hold the cap assembly to the holder. In other preferred embodiments, the inner peripheral edges of the front wall aperture may include one or more depressions and the outer perimeter of the cap assembly may include one or more projections sized and shaped to fit within the one or more depressions in the inner peripheral edges of the front wall aperture.
In still other further preferred embodiments, a holder for a dispenser package having a resealable cap assembly with an outer perimeter includes a front wall, a rear wall and a bottom wall interconnecting lower ends of the front and rear walls. The front, rear and bottom walls of the holder define a receiving area for the dispenser package. The front wall desirably includes an aperture defined by inner peripheral edges of the front wall. The holder includes a heating element in thermal communication with at least one of the front, rear and/or bottom walls. The holder also preferably includes at least one actuator provided at the inner peripheral edges of the front wall aperture and in communication with the heating element. The at least one actuator is movable between a first position in which the heating element is activated and a second position in which the heating element is deactivated. In operation, the outer perimeter of the resealable cap assembly is preferably engagable with the inner peripheral edges of the front wall aperture for securing the dispenser package to the holder. When the cap assembly is secured to the holder, the outer perimeter of the cap assembly engages at least one actuator for urging the actuator into a first position for activating the heating element.
In yet further preferred embodiments of the present invention, the front wall of a holder may include a hinge so that the front wall may be swung between open and closed positions. As such, the front wall may be swung from a closed position to an open position for loading and/or removing a dispenser package from the holder. After a dispenser package has been placed in the holder, the front wall may be swung back to the closed position shown in FIG. 32. Referring to FIG. 33, in certain preferred embodiments, the holder also includes a resilient element, such as a spring, adjacent the front wall hinge that normally urges the front wall to move back to the closed position. As a result, an operator can merely release the front wall when the front wall is in the opened position and the front wall will snap back to the closed position.